Iran-Pre-Achaemenid Iran Ancient Iran

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Iran's history as a nation of people speaking an Indo-European
language did not begin until the middle of the second millennium
B.C. Before then, Iran was occupied by peoples with a variety of
cultures. There are numerous artifacts attesting to settled
agriculture, permanent sun-dried- brick dwellings, and
pottery-making from the sixth millennium B.C. The most advanced
area technologically was ancient Susiana, present-day Khuzestan
Province
(see
fig. 1). By the fourth millennium, the inhabitants of
Susiana, the Elamites, were using semipictographic writing,
probably learned from the highly advanced civilization of Sumer in
Mesopotamia (ancient name for much of the area now known as Iraq),
to the west.

Sumerian influence in art, literature, and religion also became
particularly strong when the Elamites were occupied by, or at least
came under the domination of, two Mesopotamian cultures, those of
Akkad and Ur, during the middle of the third millennium. By 2000
B.C. the Elamites had become sufficiently unified to destroy the
city of Ur. Elamite civilization developed rapidly from that point,
and, by the fourteenth century B.C., its art was at its most
impressive.

Data as of December 1987

Pre-Achaemenid Iran

Iran's history as a nation of people speaking an Indo-European
language did not begin until the middle of the second millennium
B.C. Before then, Iran was occupied by peoples with a variety of
cultures. There are numerous artifacts attesting to settled
agriculture, permanent sun-dried- brick dwellings, and
pottery-making from the sixth millennium B.C. The most advanced
area technologically was ancient Susiana, present-day Khuzestan
Province
(see
fig. 1). By the fourth millennium, the inhabitants of
Susiana, the Elamites, were using semipictographic writing,
probably learned from the highly advanced civilization of Sumer in
Mesopotamia (ancient name for much of the area now known as Iraq),
to the west.

Sumerian influence in art, literature, and religion also became
particularly strong when the Elamites were occupied by, or at least
came under the domination of, two Mesopotamian cultures, those of
Akkad and Ur, during the middle of the third millennium. By 2000
B.C. the Elamites had become sufficiently unified to destroy the
city of Ur. Elamite civilization developed rapidly from that point,
and, by the fourteenth century B.C., its art was at its most
impressive.